Washington, DC – The Safari Club International Foundation (SCIF) raised $205,000 for wildlife conservation through the sale of seven exclusive tags. The auctions for the conservation tags were held during the Safari Club International 2011 Annual Hunters’ Convention.

“I am truly excited to see the amazing response from SCI’s members for the 2011 Conservation Tags,” said SCIF President Joseph Hosmer. “These auction tags are one way SCI members directly contribute to the success of our sustainable management of wildlife in the United States. SCIF will continue to provide more conservation tags to the SCI membership, and thus increase our on-the-ground conservation funding for years to come!”

The Independent Charities Seal of Excellence is awarded to the members of Independent Charities of America and Local Independent Charities of America that have, upon rigorous independent review, been able to certify, document, and demonstrate on an annual basis that they meet the highest standards of public accountability, program effectiveness, and cost effectiveness. These standards include those required by the US Government for inclusion in the Combined Federal Campaign, probably the most exclusive fund drive in the world. Of the 1,000,000 charities operating in the United States today, it is estimated that fewer than 50,000 or 5 percent, meet or exceed these standards, and, of those, fewer than 2,000 have been awarded the Seal.